to play a tape, video, or recording backwards to return to an earlier point.
From 're-' (again) and 'wind' (to turn). Modern word created in the 1950s-60s with cassette tapes and VCRs, combining the prefix meaning repetition with the mechanical action of winding.
Rewind is a word born from technology that's mostly dead now—VCR tapes and cassettes are nearly extinct, but we still say 'rewind' when we pause a streaming video! It's a ghost word from the analog age.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.